The Dumfriesshire and Galloway Natural History and Antiquarian Society

Artefacts

Axe Hammer, Locharbriggs

Period:

Bronze Age

Description:

Found in a drainage ditch in 1947, a plain axe hammer with a
shaft hole in the centre, with an hour glass shaped side profile.
This axe has an outward curved cutting edge with a square flattened
butt and is made of a gritty yellow coloured stone.

Battle axes, mace heads and axe hammers

Battle axes were designed as weapons of war, with a cutting edge
at one end, a hammer at the other and a central hourglass shaft
hole for hafting. They are associated with the Beaker people and
are sometimes found with burial urns. They are relatively uncommon
in south west Scotland, perhaps because the high and difficult
terrain deterred conflict.

Mace heads were designed to give a crushing blow in battle. Most
mace heads from this area have a rounded outline with a straight
sided shaft hole for hafting. It is possible that the technique of
boring shaft holes through stone was learned from the makers of
battle axes. They are also often associated with burials.

The most numerically important finds, axe hammers were also
primarily weapons of war. Many axe hammers have been found close to
the town of Dumfries and were often made of locally available
stone. As they are rarely found as part of a grave group, they are
difficult to date. Axe hammers are often found in river valleys,
and it has been suggested that there may be a connection between
the distribution of axe hammers and the working of copper ores.
Large heavy axe hammers may also have been used as agricultural
tools.

Producing tools like these took time. After selecting an
appropriate rock, a hammer was used to create the rough shape. The
Bronze Age stone mason would have continued pecking at the rock,
using smaller and finer tools as the work progressed. The shaft
hole would have been made by drilling from both sides, perhaps with
a section of antler or bone in a bow drill.

Many of these implements have a polished surface, which was
achieved by rubbing on a wetted stone slab, perhaps using sand as
an abrasive.